The National Council on Communications (CNC) suspended the private bimonthly
Misamu, citing an ownership dispute between the paper's editor, Noel
Ngwa Nguema, and a senator. Local journalists told CPJ that the ownership
issue is an excuse to shutter the paper because it has criticized the government.

On September 19, the CNC sent a letter to Misamu informing it that
the suspension is extended until Gabonese authorities rule on the paper's
ownership.

MAY 15, 2003

Le TempsCENSORED

The National Council on Communications (CNC) suspended the private weekly
Le Temps the day after the newspaper published an article alleging
that members of the government were appropriating funds earmarked for the
coordination of a festival commemorating the country's independence.

On May 15, a CNC spokesman announced on state television that the newspaper
was suspended indefinitely. Two days later, the newspaper's directors received
a letter from the CNC ordering the newspaper suspended for three months.
The letter mentioned the article that ran in Le Temps and accused
the newspaper of "attacking the nation's credibility." The newspaper began
publishing again on August 20.

AUGUST 22, 2003

Noel Ngwa Nguema, Sub-VersionATTACKED

The Gabonese minister of finance invited Nguema, a contributor to the satirical
bimonthly Sub-Version, to meet with Gabonese President Omar Bongo.
Nguema told CPJ that during the meeting, which National Council on Communications
(CNC) President Pierre-Mari Ndong and Communications Minister Mehdi Teale
also attended, President Bongo accused Sub-Version of attacking the
government by writing about first lady Lucie Bongo. An article that appeared
in the paper's second edition on August 20 suggested that the first lady
was meddling in politics, according to local journalists.

Nguema told CPJ that President Bongo threw a heavy ornament at him and attempted
to physically assault him. The president also told CNC President Ndong that
he never wanted to see the newspaper again, said Nguema.

SEPTEMBER 19, 2003
Posted: September 29, 2003
La SagaieCENSORED

The National Council on Communications (CNC) sent a letter to the bimonthly
private newspaper La Sagaie banning the paper for inciting tribal
and printing reports "attacking the freedom and dignity of the institutions
of the Gabonese republic." Local journalists said the charges stemmed from
an article alleging that people from the southeastern Haut-Ogoué
region dominate the country's government and army.

On August 22, Communications Minister Mehdi Teale had appeared on Gabonese
state television and warned La Sagaie of "legal action" and "severe
punishment," according to local journalists. That same day, the CNC sent
a memo to the Interior Ministry urging the ministry to seize the newspaper
and monitor its content, according to journalists who read the letter. Journalists
at La Sagaie told CPJ that the newspaper canceled its next edition
following the televised announcement.
SEPTEMBER 17, 2003Posted: September 29, 2003

Police seized the third edition of the satirical bimonthly Sub-Version
at the airport in the capital, Libreville, and detained four of the paper's
staff for questioning for several hours. Memey, Mimongo, Boubanga, and Ondamba
had gone to the airport to collect copies of the paper, which is printed
in Cameroon to reduce costs.

On September 19, the National Council on Communications (CNC) sent a letter
to the newspaper's publications director ordering Sub-Version to
cease publication, according to journalists at the paper. The letter also
accused Sub-Version of carrying articles "attacking the dignity of
the president, his family, and the institutions of the Republic." Journalists
at the newspaper told CPJ that the order stemmed from an article that appeared
in the paper's second edition on August 20 suggesting that first lady Lucie
Bongo was meddling in politics.

On August 22, Communications Minister Mehdi Teale appeared on Gabonese state
television and warned Sub-Version of "legal action" and "severe punishment,"
local journalists said. The same day, the CNC sent a memo to the Interior
Ministry urging the ministry to seize the newspaper and monitor its content,
according to journalists who read the letter.

DECEMBER 12, 2003
Posted: December 23, 2003

L'Autre journalCENSORED

Police officers seized the entire run of the second issue of the privately
owned bimonthly L'Autre journal at the airport in the capital, Libreville.
The issue was printed in Cameroon because Multipress, the state-run printing
company that had printed the first issue of the paper, refused to print
the second, according to local journalists.

On December 23, journalists at the newspaper received a letter from the
National Council on Communications (CNC), dated December 19, which ordered
the paper suspended indefinitely. The letter accused the newspaper of publishing
articles that might "disturb public order." Local journalists told the Committee
to Protect Journalists that the issue contained an editorial criticizing
the government's repression of the private press in Gabon as well as an
article criticizing the government's alleged mismanagement of funds from
Gabon's oil industry.

The first issue of the paper had featured a front-page article alleging
that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has delayed reaching an agreement
with Gabonese authorities because of mismanagement of IMF funds in the past.
The second issue also had a front-page article commenting on Gabon's negotiations
with the IMF.